Swoon
by kinetic-cataclysm
Summary: "Lily, you're going to hurt his sense of male pride soon. Most girls quiver or at least sigh a bit when they get snogged by a guy that hot." Lily gave her a disbelieving look. "How much more clichéd do you want our relationship to be?"


A/N: For all that "Rumors" has been the only LilyxJames story I have ever written, I do fancy myself to be an avid reader of the pairing here on FF. And I have one complaint- Why is Lily almost always reduced to a quivering heap at James' feet?

Don't get me wrong, I always enjoy that sight of a hot young man. I'm not _dead_. But I like to think that Lily has a stronger sense of discipline (and pride) than to let herself be reduced to another sighing love-struck girl just because she loves James. It's her perspective on his personality that changed, not his looks.

It is with that observation in mind that I wrote Swoon. I hope you enjoy the results of my contemplation. =)

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Swoon

'How' is an interrogative word that implies the question of _'How does that happen?'_, or _'What is the process that leads to that result?'_. 'But' is a coordinating conjunction that presents a contrast or exception. When these two words are placed eloquently together in the best grammatical manner, it leads to the question posed to Lily Evans one Saturday morning.

"But how?" Alice asked incredulously, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees. Her bewildered gaze rested on her long-time friend Lily Evans, who was currently sifting through a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans for a chocolate one. Both girls sat on Lily's bed in the Head dorms that morning after breakfast, enjoying a casual chat before heading to the library that afternoon to work on their respective assignments.

Lily, after finding the desired flavor and popping it into her mouth, gave her friend of seven years a bemused glance. "How am I the only girl who doesn't melt into a puddle at Potter's feet you mean?" Was her response, and she was swiftly smacked with a pillow for it. Her indignant yelp was cut off by Alice.

"Stop calling him that, you've been going out with him for over two months now."

"Old habits die hard." Lily shot back, picking up a few jelly beans that had landed on her blankets and eating the flavors she liked. The rest were tossed into Alice's lap.

"Is that why?" Alice persisted, eating the jelly beans tossed to her while giving Lily a no-nonsense look. Lily could only shrug and push back her first comment of, _'So we've moved to why instead of how, huh?'_ and focused on answering.

"I couldn't tell you Alice. It's probably because I decided to date _James_," She stressed the first name to Alice's nod of approval, "for his changed personality. I never claimed he was ugly, just arrogant and a jerk." Alice chuckled before leaning back against the bed post nearest her.

"Anyone who calls James ugly is obviously blind and or off their rocker. If I didn't have Frank…" Lily shook her head and flicked her friend in the knee.

"Thanks for being so supportive of my relationship. It's comforting to know that you would jump him in a heartbeat if Frank and I weren't around." Alice gave a mock 'harrumph' at Lily's sarcastic comment before grinning.

"Only because I envy your restraint. How can you _not_ jump him every time he comes up to you? For Merlin's sake, he ruffles his hair and acts like a gentleman all while giving you that smoldering look that screams 'I love you'."

Lily sighed and gave Alice another bemused look. "As I said, it was more James' personality than his looks that got me to finally date him. And while the fact that he's undeniably attractive is a definite bonus," Alice snorted and muttered, "Duh", under her breath, "I've had six years to become completely unaffected by it." Lily finished, ignoring Alice's interruption.

"Well, become unaffected. You're going to hurt James' male pride soon. Men like a girl who shows she's appreciative of their charm." Lily gave her an odd look before simply laughing. Alice frowned at her for a moment before realizing the irony of the statement and collapsing into giggles as well.

After a few moments had passed Lily quieted her laughs, trying to calm herself. Alice followed her example and in another minute the girls has stopped, even though smiles still hovered on their lips.

"I think James' 'male pride'," Lily air quoted the phrase, "is satisfied whenever I snog him back instead of hexing him or smile at him instead of scowling. Part of the reason he first tried to pursue me was because I refused to succumb to his blatant flirting, remember? I think if I suddenly started to quiver and sigh at his presence he'd think I'd fallen down a flight of stairs and hit my head." Alice's lips tugged upwards into a grin.

"Or he'd think you've finally fallen completely and irrevocably in love with him." She suggested. Lily raised a red eyebrow at her.

"Did you really just use that phrase? How much more clichéd do you want our relationship to be? While we're at it why don't I run up to him crying and angsting about how much I think he doesn't love me. Then he can soothingly reassure me by the lake during a sunset that he loves me while he kisses me slowly and gently." There was a silent pause after Lily's statement before both girls burst into giggles again.

"Can't… you… see… him… doing… that?" Alice gasped, hands on her sides as she tried to avoid falling off the bed. Lily ignored the box of jelly beans that now lay upended on her pillow as she tried to keep tears streaming from her eyes, she was laughing so hard. Lily kept trying to compose herself, but then the image would come up in her mind again, of her practically swooning in James' arms as he murmured soft words of affection to her.

And the laughing would begin anew.

Apparently the two girls had been laughing harder than they meant to, because the sound of banging downstairs interrupted their humorous moment. Still sniggering, Lily and Alice hopped off of the bed and made their way down the stairs to the door that connected Lily's room to the Head Common Room that James and her shared.

Upon opening the door, Lily came face to face with the source of her laughter. James stood in front of the door, an amused expression on his handsome face for all that his arms were crossed and he kept trying to force his mouth into a frown. It must have been hard with Lily grinning and Alice snickering behind her.

"Mind sharing the joke?" He asked after a moment, eyebrow quirked and smile crooked. "Sirius and I could hear you two screeching like hippogriffs from down here." Lily stepped forward to smack him on the arm as Alice's laughter abruptly turned into an indignant "Oi!"

Her smile was still intact though as she looked up at her boyfriend. "The joke starred you, so be careful what you say," was her comment back, a smirk on her face as her eyes twinkled mischievously. Some of James' joking behavior had slowly worn off on her during the year.

"How could someone like me ever be the butt of a joke?" He said, jokingly affronted, as he took as step back to join Sirius as the other boy lounged on a couch. Sirius absentmindedly waved at the two with one hand as he tried to juggle chocolate frogs with the other. The two girls didn't bother to wave back as his attention was diverted, but they did follow James to sit. Lily sat next to James on the other couch while Alice curled up on a chair.

"It was more of a hypothetical situation." Alice explained, her smile back now that she brought the joke back up. After a pause when James looked at her expectantly, she suddenly gave Lily a devious glance before turning back to James. "What's the corniest thing you've ever done to get Lily to impress you?" she asked.

Lily rolled her eyes but smiled as she looked up at James, who had a thoughtful expression on his face. Sirius gave up on the chocolate frogs to sit up on the couch.

"I'd say it would have to be just last month, though you never knew about it Lily. Remember that one, mate? The failed two month anniversary?" James glared at his best friend for a moment before sheepishly turning to Lily and Alice.

"I had decided to try and see if I could set up a romantic evening for Lily to show much I appreciated her giving me a chance. I had tried to do everything from the book—Picnic at the lake near sunset, candles and a delicious meal, a walk as soon as the sun had set watching the stars come out. I even tried my hand at poetry." At Lily's incredulous look he shrugged. "It was the most ridiculously romantic thing I have tried to do. But that afternoon, when I tried to talk to you, you had reminded me that we had a Head Meeting with Professor Dumbledore."

Lily smiled at him. "I remember. You disappeared when we got back to the dorm and told me to wait in the common room. You came back ten minutes later with two fudge sundaes and wished me a happy anniversary."

James gave her his crooked grin and ruffled his hair nervously. "It was my back-up plane that I thought of during the meeting seeing as the rest of it was ruined." Alice made a soft noise that made Lily and James turn to look at her.

"That's so sweet." She said softly. "Though it proves our point earlier Lily. He would be a hopeless romantic if given the chance." Her mood shifted to a teasing grin that Lily could only mirror when she looked at James' confused expression.

"Alice has been giving me a hard time because I don't swoon and twitter over you live a love-struck buffoon." She said to him, smiling when he laughed.

"If Lily ever swooned over me I would first assume she had been hit from behind by a Bludger when I wasn't looking." He joked, and Sirius joined in as James laughed.

"If Evans ever acts like some of the girls that used to flit around James I want a picture that I can blackmail her with when she's sober again." Sirius chortled.

The four laughed for a few minutes before James shifted and pulled Lily into his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist as he pecked her on the cheek. When all Lily did was lean back against him and smile he looked at Alice. "For all that I may have my failed romantic moments, that right there is why I love Lily so much." Alice gestured for him to elaborate, but Lily broke in.

"Any other girl would have blushed, stammered, sighed, or wanted it to turn into a snogging match. I just took it for what it was." She shrugged and shifted so that she was more comfortably situated on his lap.

"Though I certainly wouldn't have minded if you had turned it into a snogging match." James remarked with a smirk, lips resting teasingly on her neck. Alice sighed and stood up.

"I need some sappy romance. I'm going to go find Frank. Lily, you're still meeting me at the Library at two, right?" Lily nodded, and Alice moved away to the portrait hole, her parting comment being "Have fun cleaning up the jelly beans!"

After she disappeared Lily could tell she was about to be questioned, and simply said, "Don't ask." James chuckled behind her and Sirius grinned.

The three conversed amiably about various topics for the next half-hour before Sirius also got up. He strolled off with a comment about being inspired to find a new girlfriend for the week, which got him a chuckle from James and a barbed comment from Lily.

As the portrait door swung shut behind him, James lifted Lily off his lap, standing up and pulling her with him. Lily looked at him questioningly, and he grinned at her.

"I'm curious. What brought about the swooning topic with Alice?" Lily sighed and rolled her eyes, though it was in good humor.

"You know Alice. She's a romantic at heart. She was talking about the best kiss she had ever had with Frank, and she mentioned that it has almost made her swoon from delight. I made the off-hand comment that while you are undoubtedly good at snogging, I have never felt my knees go weak or light-headed. It was just too silly and clichéd to me." Lily quirked an eyebrow at his smirk.

"What?"

"I'm both happy and offended. You both complimented and insulted my snogging skills in one sentence." Lily chuckled at him and shook her head in bemusement when his arms wrapped around her as his lips made their way from her jaw towards her lips.

"It wasn't a challenge James. And I have to say, I don't think you will ever get me to go weak in the knees from kissing." James paused to look her in the eye.

"Stop being so contradictory Lil. One minute you say you're not challenging me, and then you clearly dare me to try and kiss you enough that you melt in my arms." Lily gave him a disapproving look for a moment before sighing.

"I guess Alice was right. Go on then. Placate your ruffled male pride and I guess we'll see what it takes to reduce me to just another quivering teenage girl." James looked taken aback at her words until he caught the teasing lilt to the words, and she leaned forward to kiss him soundly.

Then his lips curled up into a smile as he kissed her back, pushing her back onto the couch as he focused single-mindedly on the girl before him.

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Did Lily swoon? That's up to you. Make-out sessions aren't my forte, so I'm afraid you'll have to imagine the juicy epilogue.

Drop a review if you are so inclined.

~KC


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